Crimson Day
by Ink Rabbit
Summary: While traveling with his friend to find a Soul Gem, Buddhist Monkey finds himself putting his life on the line, as he realizes his friend is about to hers forever. So, he'll do his best to pull off the impossible to find both Soul Gem and save his friend's soul. Question is: can he really pull this off without getting himself killed?
1. Prologue

**A/N: Ya know... seeing that there weren't too many Buddhist Monkey stories made me sad, you guys. He needs more love! Do you not see how awesome he is? So, here we go! A story that is about Buddhist Monkey on a quest to save his friend! Is it an OC? Yes. Why? Because there aren't too many characters Buddhist Monkey knows... except for his enemies... But still! Everyone's anthro, because that's what I like. Here's the story! Also, the title was inspired by the song 'Crimson Day' by Avenged Sevenfold. I think it fits. And I like the song.**

**Crimson Day**

**~Prologue~**

The moon's glow seemed so bright on this night. The blossom petals in the trees would shake loose as the frozen night breeze carried them away. The sound of the cricket's chirps slowly lulled Buddhist Monkey to sleep. He gave off a low yawn, stretching his arms out. After blowing out his candle and closing the book he was reading, he headed off to bed. It was a peaceful day, and he was positive he would be able to get to sleep in no time.

_**CRASH!**_

Scratch that. There was no way he was going to sleep unless he knew that that wasn't from an enemy.

"Alright, show yourself!" he spoke, entering his bedroom, finding that his window was wide open and a little form was curled beneath his blankets. He sighed, walking over. "There's no use hiding. Show yourself this instant, and I might show you mercy!"

"I'm cold, Buddhist Monkey!" cried the voice from the beneath the sheets. "I fell into the pond, and with the breeze outside, my cloak isn't enough to keep me warm! Please let me stay for tonight!"

"Cyanide? Is that really you?" Slowly peeling back the damp covers, the monkey found a young, five-tailed kitsune laying there, her fur soaking wet, along with her clothes. He frowned, gently running a paw along her white fur, shivering at the touch. "This isn't good for you, you know. You may be special, but you're still able to get sick and injured!"

"I know!" she whined, sitting upright. "I'm sorry! At least I took my shoes off before I came inside..."

"Yes. Thank you for that. Usually you forget."

"They were muddy. I thought you would kill me if I came inside with muddy shoes."

"Not _kill_, but scold. Stay here. I'll get you a towel."

"I'm fine with your blanket..."

"I said I'm getting you a towel!"

"Fine. I'll wait here."

Buddhist Monkey sighed as he left the room, shaking his head. Now what was he supposed to do? Send her home? She wouldn't make it this night! With her fur and clothes that wet, she would most likely catch pneumonia or some other sickness. Besides, he didn't want her traveling at night. It was dangerous. Especially since she could be so careless at times.

Soon returning with a fluffy towel, Buddhist Monkey had found that the kitsune was curled right back into a ball, shivering slightly and sniffling.

"Feeling under the weather yet, Cyanide?" asked Buddhist Monkey as he grew closer, draping the towel over her body and rubbing the back of her neck where her hair parted.

"Kinda," she replied quietly, rising her head once her friend was done drying her neck. She then took the towel off her body, proceeded to remove her cloak, and dried off her arms. Buddhist Monkey shook his head when he saw her torn shirt underneath. "Thanks for the towel, Buddhist Monkey. I'm glad I have a friend like you!"

"Of course, Cyanide. Just... do be more careful, please?" he spoke, watching as she nodded happily.

"Sorry!" She quickly finished drying, before rolling her cloak up in the towel and squeezing whatever water she could out.

"So, how's the apprenticeship going?" Buddhist Monkey soon asked, tilting his head. "When are you getting your sixth tail?"

"Not sure. I still have some training to do," she explained, before a large smile started to spread across her furry face. "I found out about a ball thingy though! It holds my magic when I go on big missions for my master!"

"Really? That's amazing!" Cyanide nodded, reaching into her jean's pocket and pulling out a small white ball. Buddhist Monkey looked close, seeing small swirls of dark blue and aqua inside, matching his friend's designs. He smiled at this. "This is truly amazing, Cyanide! How did you find this out?"

"Master showed me! He said I should know how to use it!" she told him, smiling more as she also admired the small ball she possessed. The two stayed there a while, talking about their previous adventures that they didn't share together, due to being apart. Buddhist Monkey told her about the fight he had with the Generic Tree Ninjas. He told her about how they ruined his flowers and books, and then how the Dark Shadow Lord thought it would be a smart idea to send Char Sui after him. Cyanide laughed at how he burnt him to a crisp. Once he was done, Buddhist Monkey had the honor of hearing that Cyanide was currently on a little mission to find something called a Soul Gem. Apparently, it was glowing toxic green gem encased in gold, with a little tree on top. She told him that it had the power of lifting a dark curse upon her little village.

"Do you know where it is?" he asked. To his dismay, she shook her head.

"Sadly, no," she sighed, before reaching into her other pocket and pulling out an old picture. "But, my master gave me this and told me it's sealed away in the old Ruins. I've been out for at least three days trying to find it in the woods."

"Have you slept at all?" He was answered with a sheepish giggle and another shake of the head.

"That's the reason why I fell into the pond," she explained, putting her head down. "I got dizzy when the cold air hit me, and I fell in."

"Cyanide, that's not healthy!" he protested, crossing his arms. "You need your rest!"

"I know! It's just... I don't like my village being cursed," she replied quietly. "I just wanted to find that Soul Gem and make everything right again. It's not easy being ruler of something, ya know."

"I understand. But you need to at least for a little bit," he told her. "Have you got your bag on you?"

"Yeah. It's hanging from the tree outside," Both looked at the beautiful blossom tree outside the window, seeing the gray Totoro bag gently swinging in the breeze. "It followed me into the water."

"Was your brush and ink inside?" he asked, though he already knew the answer. And the nod he received only proved he was right.

"My brush will be fine, but the ink is done for," she started, a frown forming. "How about that, Buddhist Monkey? An artist, who was blessed with a gift for drawing and reviving nature, to only have a brush and no ink? I'm starting to think I'll never find that Soul Gem, and that I'm wasting my time..."

"Cyanide, quitters never achieve anything in life," he spoke, placing a paw on her shoulder. "Maybe the gem is closer than you expect. If you want, I'll accompany you in this quest!"

"Really? You're amazing, Buddhist Monkey!" Cyanide reached over, pulling her friend into a bone-crushing hug, her frown now gone and replaced with a smile. "Wanna go now?"

"Cyanide... you have to sleep before you die from exhaustion."

"Aw! You're no fun, Buddhist Monkey."

"I just care about your well being!"

"And I care about my village getting back to normal, and getting more ink so I can draw again!"


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: Oh God, I'm actually updating. That's a surprise. Anyways, I thought it would be fun to do some writing, since I'm currently hyped up on beautiful music... like always. So, here we go!**

**Crimson Day**

**~Chapter 1~**

The sound of morning birds awoke Buddhist Monkey. He smiled as he could smell the fresh blossom petals through the cracked window... Wait. Why was his window open?

"Cyanide?" he called out, noticing his friend wasn't at the food of his bed. He frowned once he noticed that her cloak was missing, along with her bag that hung from the tree outside. _'Probably wanted to do this alone to prove how strong and brave she is,'_ he thought, shaking his head with a sigh. _'Why can't she learn that she's still young and weak in power?'_

He slowly got out of bed, rubbing his tired eyes. After taking a quick shower, Buddhist Monkey found himself stunned in surprise when he saw Cyanide rolling around outside, one of her five tails clenched tightly in her jaws as she proceeded to roll around, tugging at it. She was acting like a little pup again, tugging at her tail, barking and growling quietly, rolling around in the dirt. It reminded Buddhist Monkey of when he first found the girl when she was four. She had wandered away from home, stopped in front of his home, and after waiting a while, she started to play with her tail. Seeing this made him smile.

"Cyanide!" he called out, catching the girl's attention. She ceased her tugging and barking, looking over at her friend with innocent eyes. Finally releasing her tail, she got up with a large smile, snatching her bag up and placing it on her shoulder.

"You ready to go?" she asked, seeming excited to get back on her journey. Buddhist Monkey had to admit, she looked a lot better now that she had rested. But how she woke up before him was a different story.

"Yes. Did you sleep well last night?" he asked, following the kitsune down the path and into the woods. She nodded happily.

"Yep!" she replied, though her smile slowly vanished. "Though, I did have a weird dream... We made it to the Ruins, but when we got inside, we got separated and I couldn't find you, or my way out!"

"Really? What happened then?"

"I dunno. I woke up and didn't feel like going back to sleep!"

Time seemed to fly by as the two talked and walked. Buddhist Monkey finally learned that for the past three months he didn't see the girl, she was off learning new tricks with her brushes. He knew the girl was always gifted with nature, and finally found her secret: her brushes. She confessed that she used the brushes for magic, and rarely painted pictures anymore. She used her magic at the beginning of the curse, reviving the bits and pieces of dying land, only to have it buried by the curse. She told him that this Soul Gem was her last hope. Her revival and reaping magic wasn't enough to break her village out of the horrible hex.

"How does this Soul Gem work, anyways?" he asked, looking over at the young kitsune.

"I dunno," she sighed, putting her head down. "But if it means my village will be back to normal, then I'm willing to give my life for it."

"You won't have to give up your life," he chuckled, patting her back. "Not with me around, anyways!"

"Yeah, I know you'll protect me!" she giggled.

The sun was finally starting to set. Buddhist Monkey was squinting as they continued their way through the thick forest, trying to follow Cyanide's light footsteps that crunched on fallen leaves. He could barely see her glowing eye markings as she would turn her head to make sure he hadn't gotten lose.

"You doin' okay, Buddhist Monkey?" she asked, finally stopping and letting him catch up. "You can always turn and go back. I won't mind."

"No!" he replied, casting her a small smile. "I'm not going to let someone as young as yourself travel out to somewhere dangerous like this alone!"

"I'm not a child, Buddhist Monkey!" she cried, pouting at him. "I'm old enough to know right from wrong!... most of the times..."

"Cyanide, whether you like it or not, I'm going to stay with you," he told her, knowing she was rolling her eyes. "And I'm going to help you find this Soul Gem, and help you lift that curse. Now, come on! Let's go find those Ruins!"

The two ran off, traveling further into the forest, Cyanide holding onto Buddhist Monkey's wrist, being his guide through the maze of trees, bushes, and other things. Buddhist Monkey allowed his thoughts to wonder, going back to when he first met Cyanide. He smiled as he remembered how she released her tail, bouncing up to him and asking him to play. He remembered how he picked her up, watching as she played with his robe, giggling as her paws got tangled in the orange material. He had asked her questions, though she replied with 'I'm lost, mister!' or 'I'm looking for a blue and white brush!' and even 'I'm hungry...'. He fed her the fruit he had, and even cleaned her up afterward. And once she found the brush she was looking for, he carried her home, where her older brother happily took her and thanked him greatly. Come to think of it, Buddhist Monkey hadn't seen her brother in a long time.

"Cyanide?" he spoke softly, finally returning to reality. "What happened to your brother, Tenshi?"

The kitsune didn't answer her friend. She just continued through the forest, her grip tightening a bit. He went to ask again, but she cut him off.

"I heard you. I don't wanna talk about," she said curtly, though he could pick up the hurt in her voice. He nodded slowly, continuing their way through the forest. He could only pray that they were close to the Ruins, and that Cyanide was going to be okay.


End file.
